Morning in Ithaca
by Rosepixie
Summary: A series of very short stories about characters from The Odyssey in the morning. There is very little plot, but it is safe to assume that the stories all take place on the same morning, so small connections may become evident. I have no current plans to expand any of these, but may continue to add more of them over time.
1. Penelope

Every morning Penelope awoke surrounded by the stout posts of her bed. They were as familiar as the sun, the steadiest things in her life. It got more difficult to keep going each day and now that Telemachus was gone as well, those bedposts were the most comforting thing she had. She reached out to touch the post nearest to her head, the post that made her bed special. It was still growing, a strong and straight olive tree, the strongest part of her bed. Perhaps of her life.

At night, after she finished pulling out her weaving and stumbled to bed, she dreamed that there was a dryad in the olive tree. The dryad would whisper to her of her brave husband and how he was struggling to return to his beloved wife. Sometimes it would tell her fantastic tales of the adventures he was having, of sorceresses and winds, cyclopses and pigs. Her steward dismissed the dreams as the fancies of a mourning woman who refused to accept that her husband was dead, but Penelope refused to give up hope that they were messages from the gods, urging her to keep faith.

She sighed and kissed the bedpost, thanking it for giving her strength, and forced herself to get up and call for a maid. The girl bustled into the room and began dressing her mistress. Penelope closed her eyes and prayed to Athena and Hera for strength as the maid happily chattered on about the handsome new suitor who had arrived.

Unwanted suitors filled her hall, gorged themselves on her food, and freely dallied with the women of her household. And all the while, they tried to convince her to choose one of them to replace Odysseus. Every morning she hoped she would wake to find them gone. Every morning they were still there, often in greater numbers than the day before. Even her servants now urged her to forget her husband and take one of the suitors as a new one. She would wait as long as necessary, though, for she knew deep in her heart that Odysseus would return to her just has he promised.

Until that day, she would continue to smile and stall and pray for strength. She trusted Odysseus and would wait. She was patient. Squaring her shoulders, Queen Penelope of Ithaca headed out to face another day.


	2. Athena

Helios was just beginning his daily journey across the sky when Athena decided that it was time to check in on her favorite mortal again.

The King of Ithaca's ship was easy to spot on the crystal blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea. She felt a little sorry for him, being so far from home for so long, but knew that her uncle wouldn't let Odysseus reach his destination until he was good and ready. In the meantime, his journey was providing the clever king with a steady stream of interesting challenges far more intriguing than she would likely have gotten to see if he was safely back at home.

Ahead of the ship, probably just coming into view for them, was a small island. Most of the island was covered in a dense forest and a graceful palace sat nestled in the center. Athena narrowed her eyes as she recognized the place. Circe, a demigoddess sorceress, lived there surrounded by enchanted lions and wolves who had once been men.

Tapping her finger thoughtfully, the Goddess of Wisdom considered this new challenge. Circe's magic powers and womanly charms were fearsome, but she had no doubt that with her help Odysseus could best the witch.

With a smile, Athena went to find Hermes. The fleet-footed Messenger of the Gods was not an early riser, but Athena knew how to convince him to help her. Besides, the sneaky mortal king she was so fond of also amused the slippery God of Thieves. After some token grumbling, Hermes flew off to deliver her message to Odysseus.

With a smug smile, Athena returned to her perch to watch the events unfold on Circe's island.


	3. Odysseus

The ship rocked and swayed in the usual way, reassuring her captain that they were still making progress and nothing was terribly wrong (for the moment). Odysseus laid back in his narrow cot and listened to the sea. He loved the feel of the rocking ship, but he didn't want to journey forever.

The King of Ithaca reached up and scratched at his chin. His face could certainly use a good shave, but it wasn't so easy to stay meticulously groomed while living at sea. He knew that his sweet Penelope would never let him go so long without a shave, but it had been years now since he had seen her, held her in his arms.

The thought of his beautiful wife made him sigh. He missed her more than he liked to let on. He pictured her sleeping peacefully in the bed he built for them, dreaming of his return. He enjoyed his adventures, but nothing compared to the comforts of home and the love of a loyal wife. He worried that she might be growing lonely without him. He had won her in a race, but he had only entered the race after they had fallen in love. Love so strong that she had chosen to leave her father for him. Would she stay faithful to that love or would she choose to leave him as she left her father? He believed she would be faithful, but with even gods against him, he couldn't be certain of what he would find when he eventually did reach home.

A shout rose up on deck, catching the king's attention. Bolting out of his bed and throwing a plain semicircular cloak over his shoulders, Odysseus hastened to discover what the commotion was about. Anything unusual at sea merited immediate investigation (especially when it was the god of the sea itself who had declared himself your enemy).

"Land directly ahead!" shouted a sailor as Odysseus came out onto the deck. The excitement of the sailors charged the very air with energy.

Striding to the railing, the cunning king took the spyglass offered to him by one of his lookouts and peered through it. He could see that there was land ahead - a wooded island. He felt a pang of disappointment that it was not the coast of his beloved Ithaca, but he knew that it would likely be some time before he reached home. At least the island would give them a much needed respite from the journey and allow them to gather fresh supplies.

Perhaps the island would even give them the chance to hunt down a wild pig or two for a small feast!


End file.
